Middlesex County Revitalization Commission (MCRC)

The Middlesex County Revitalization Commission was created by a special act of the CT General Assembly in 1993. Its mission is to encourage and stimulate economic development in Middlesex County by providing low interest loans and/or matching grants to small and mid-sized businesses in the region.

Loan and grant funds may be used for buildings, building improvements, equipment and working capital.

The members of the Middlesex County Revitalization Commission (MCRC) are the chief elected official, or a designee, from each of the fifteen towns in Middlesex County, plus a representative from the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce.

Applicants are encouraged to discuss their project with their local officials.

For further information on MCRC, please contact Jeff Pugliese, MCRC administrator, at the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce

To be eligible for funding through MCRC, the following criteria must be met:

• The business has facilities and employees in Middlesex County, Connecticut.

• The business has been registered to conduct business in Connecticut for more than one year.

• The business is current on all state and local taxes.

Small businesses with operations in Middlesex County, registered to conduct business for not less than twelve months, in good standing with all state agencies and with the payment of all state taxes, and employing not more than 100 employees, are eligible to apply. Priority for available funding will be given to those eligible applicants who (1) are creating new jobs and (2) are within Connecticut’s economic base industries, as defined in Connecticut General Statutes 32-222, including but not limited to: precision manufacturing, business services, green and sustainable technology, bioscience, and information technology sectors.

Effective for all applications received on or after December 15, 2017:

MCRC will no longer accept EXP grant-only applications. Applications for a Matching Grant and Job Creation Incentive Loan combination will continue to be accepted as well as loan-only applications.

All applicants for EXP loans must submit a Personal Financial Statement form with their application package. MCRC will require all loan applicants to provide an unlimited personal guaranty as part of the collateral obligation for a loan.

Effective for all new applications received on or after August 28, 2017:

The job/grant ratio range generally considered has been changed to $5,000 to $10,000 per new full-time W-2 job created. Consideration is given to factors such as the salary level and the skills, education and experience needed to qualify for the job. If an applicant is applying for a grant and is proposing entry level or lower wage salary jobs, then a minimum of two new full-time W-2 jobs must be created to meet the $10,000 grant minimum ($5,000 per job).

The penalty for not meeting the employment obligation for applicants receiving grant funds has been changed. The penalty is now established by dividing the MCRC grant amount by the total number of new full-time W-2 jobs created.

Effective for all new applications received on or after January 1, 2017: All applications shall include a Letter of Good Standing from the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services (DRS).

If the taxpayer is not in good standing or there are other reasons why a status letter cannot be generated online, the taxpayer will be prompted to submit a paper request for further review by DRS agency personnel, or the taxpayer will be informed of their outstanding obligations. More information is available in the recent DRS announcement, IP 2016(17), Informational Publication Status Letter.

Effective for new applications received after October 1, 2015: Each eligible small business applicant receiving financial assistance under the Small Business Express Program will be required to retain its contracted employment obligations for a period of twenty-four (24) consecutive months.